Spring wire snap



y 1940- E. s. BECKWITH 2,201,360

SPRING WIRE SNAP Filed Sept. l9 193B ZSnnentor Patented May 21 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an improvement in spring wire snaps, of the class generally used in connection with ropes or straps in the handling or control of live stock.

The metallic snaps heretofore used, so far as observed, have been of such construction, in some instances, that they do not resist the stresses directed thereto, while others are lacking in resiliency in such a degree that manual adjustments required for operating the snap are difficult or inconvenient.

The. objects of the present invention are to produce a wire snap which will resist stresses without distortion, will provide such a degree of resiliency that it may be manually adjusted without inconvenience and also, in a measure, will yield to pressure or stresses. directed thereto, this last named feature being important to prevent injury to animals held by ropes or straps, since some fractious horses and cattle are not easily managed and sudden movements or jerks might cause injury, the ropes or straps generally being attached to the head or neck and sometimes to nose-rings of cattle.

The invention includes a spring wire snap provided with a ring reinforced by a pair of resilient loops, said ring being adapted to receive a rope or strap and to be maintained at one end of the device, the reinforcing loops being disposed in spaced relation to prevent the wire from cutting into said rope or strap. With the foregoing objects in view and others which may appear, the invention presents a new and useful construction, combination and arrangement of parts as described herein and claimed, and as illustrated in the drawing, it being understood that changes may be made in form, size, proportions and minor details, said changes being within the scope of the invention as claimed.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is a side view of a spring wire snap embodying my invention, and Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same.

Fig, 3 is a side view of a spring wire snap showing a modified form of the invention, and Fig. 4 is a plan view of parts shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a spring wire snap similar to the snap shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the arms thereof being disposed in crossed relation.

Fig. 6 is a side view showing an end-portion of a snap arranged for holding a belt or strap.

Referring now to the drawing for a more particular description, and specifically to Figs. 1 and 2, the invention consists of a piece of spring wire bent midway between its ends to form a ringmember 1, the end-portions of the wire being bent to approximately a circular form to'provide a pair of reinforcing-loops 8 and 9, the ring and outer part of each reinforcing-loop being disposed 5 in such a manner that they will normally have a common center, the remaining end-portions of the wire providing a pair of crossed, rectilinear arms In and l I, the curved ends or hooks for the arms l0 and H being indicated at a, and the end of each hook being indicated at b.

As thus described, a tie-rope [2 shown in dotted lines, will be disposed in the ring-member l and will be prevented from entering the opposite end-portion of the device, and will be prevented from interfering with the operation of the hooks a and their ends I). Also since the stresses will, for the most part, be directed longitudinally of the device, it is considered to be an advantage to provide the rectilinear arms as shown.- Also it will be appreciated that the holder element or rope l2 will be pressed against the reinforcingloops 8 and 9 as well as against the ring I when stresses are applied to said rope, and the resiliency of said parts 1, 8 and 9 is depended upon, in a measure, for preventing injury to livestock occasioned by undue activity. Also it is obvious that since the loops 8 and 9 are disposed in spaced relation, the force of the stresses will be directed to different parts, andthe wire will not cut into the rope as it might if a single ring was provided.

Also according to the construction as described, when stresses are applied to the rope [2 theywill be directed to the ring 1, and further stresses will be directed to the loops 8 and 9, said loops, being moved, resistingly, toward each other, and therefore the ring and loops co-operate in providing the desired resiliency for operation.

In operation, to secure the device to a halterring III, the latter may be pressed inwardly between the hooks a and may be moved until it passes inwardly beyond the ends b of said hooks, at which time it is secured between the arms l0 and I I and may have a free, unobstructed movement from the hooks a to the ring-l.

When it is desired to separate these parts, the outwardly divergent hooks a may be forcibly moved outwardly relative to each other a sufficient distance to permit removal of said hitchingring.

The removal of the hitching-ring from the device must be manually performed, and the loops 8 and 9 provide a hand-hold for this purpose, it being necessary to hold the device in a stationary position while moving the hooks to said spaced relation.

It should be stated that according to this construction each end I) of a hook at is normally in engagement with the arm of a hook opposite thereto, and therefore a hitching-ring l3 may be secured in operative position. The ends b of the hooks are of such shape that they conform to the surface of the arms and H, and since they normally lie snugly against said arms they are not obstrusive in operation.

Referring now specifically to Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing, the spring wire snap is similar to the snap above described, and consistsof a wire bent midway between its ends to rovide a ring 1, said ring being a part of two curved portions 3' and 9' of the wire, said wire also providing a pair of arms H! and l I, also a pair of hooks a with ends I).

'It will be seen that the parts 8' and 9 are disposed in spaced relation so that a rope, extending through the ring 1, would not become unduly worn or cut by the wire. Also the parts 1. 8' and 9' provide a desired resiliency for operation, and permit a free movement of a ring (not shown) between the arms Ill and H from the ring 1 to the hooks a. i

The rectilinear arms [0' and l I do not appear to be disposed in crossed position, but this difference is not material, and when mounting a hitching-ring, or detaching the hitching-ring from the device, the operation is the same as first described.

Relative to the spring wire snap shown in Fig. 5, it consists of a ring 1" which provides two curved portions 8" and 9". Said wire provides two arms Ill" and II", each having a terminal hook a." with a terminal 2), these parts being the same as the parts shown in Figs. 3 and 4 except that the arms ID" and II," are disposed in crossed position, the parts 8" and 9" being disposed outwardly divergent for the purposes above explained. I.

The broken away detail shown in Fig. 6 is intended to represent a ring-member 'l of ellipitical form for receiving a strap, said ringmember being provided with arms 3' and l I'. It is considered that the parts shown in Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate embodiments of the invention.

As described, it will be noted that the halterringmay have free sliding movements in its elongated enclosure, the tie-ring will be maintained at one end of the snap and prevented from undue wear or injury, and that ample resiliency is provided.

It will also be noted that the wire snap is slightly tapered toward the end hooks, the rectilinear arms being spaced apart for the enclosure a sufficient distance to allow free movements of the halter-ring'and the ring-member with its relatively spaced loops or curved portions providing suitable proportions for the handhold.

Relative to the preferred form of the hooks, it will be noted that the end of each hook normally sits firmly upon the arm which it engages and any sharp points or projections on the ends of the hooks are avoided.

While only one tie-ring I is shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, I may use a plurality of tie-rings, the advantage being that it adds t the resiliency of the device.

Relative to Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing, it will be seen that the arms 9 and H3, from the ringmember to the hooks, are disposed relatively convergent toward said hooks, in side elevation, and in plan are disposed in adjacent vertical planes,

the advantage being that the operation will be.

more convenient for attaching the halter-ring to the device and for detaching the halter-ring.

Also this arrangement of parts is more convenient in manufacturing the product.

I claim as my invention- 1. A spring Wire snap comprising a single wire provided at its ends with hooks, the remaining part of said wire providing a pair of rectilinear arms disposed in crossed relation near their hooks and pair of circular, terminal, outwardly divergent loops disposed in line with said arms and providing a ring between and concentric with said loops for receiving therein a holder element.

. 2. In a spring wire snap, a wire provided with hooks at its ends, the remaining part of the wire including a pair of rectilinear arms and pair of terminal circular loops disposed in line with said arms and a ring concentric with and between said loops for receiving a holder element.

3. In a spring wire snap, a wire provided with cooperating hooks at its ends, the remaining part of the wire including a pair of arms leading from and disposed in crossed relation near said hooks, and a pair of circular, terminal, outwardly divergent loops for receiving a holder element.

4. A spring wire snap comprising a wire provided at its ends with a pair of adjacently disposed hooks, other parts of the wire providing a pair of arms adjacent each other leading from the hooks, and a pair of circular, terminal, outwardly divergent loops leading from said arms.

EDWARD S. BECKWITH. 

